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Caution sounded over unexpected New Zealand government surplus

Xinhua, March 4, 2016 Adjust font size:

The New Zealand government's operating surplus in the first seven months of the financial year was more than triple its own forecasts due as more people entered the workforce and consumption rose, the Treasury said Friday.

The operating surplus of 934 million NZ dollars (629.05 million U.S. dollars) to the end of January was 724 million NZ dollars (487.61 million U.S. dollars) higher than forecast in December, according to the Treasury's Financial Statements.

Revenue at 42.5 billion NZ dollars (28.64 billion U.S. dollars) was 200 million NZ dollars (134.7 million U.S. dollars) higher than forecast with higher than expected sales and income taxes, while expenses, at 42.1 billion NZ dollars (28.35 billion U.S. dollars), were 0.9 percent lower than forecast.

Finance Minister Bill English issued a note of caution to the figures, saying they highlighted volatility in the monthly accounts -- driven by fluctuations in tax revenue -- as well as careful financial management.

"We don't read too much into any particular month's result. We will continue to focus on keeping a tight rein on spending and paying down debt -- we're working hard to reduce net government debt to around 20 percent of GDP in 2020," he said in a statement. Endit